Sewing machine attachment



Oct. 27, 1936. H. c. UNDERWOOD zmw SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT Filed Nov. 12, "1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 'XNVENTOR .i/awmw 6f flzldermwd ATTORNEY Oct. 27, 1936. H, c UNDERWOQD 2,058,927

SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT Filed Nov. 12, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR (XV award 6f Z/rzda/waad ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 27, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT orricr 2 Claims.

for the other part of the work whereby uniform lines of stitching will be obtained upon an article,

provide means whereby the tape or the like will be prevented from becoming distorted as it issues from the feed dog; and to obtain other advantages and results as may be brought out in the following description.

Drawings:

Figure l is an end elevation of my improved combination feed dog, throat plate and presser foot as applied to a sewing machine, the sewing machine and working parts being shown in broken lines and in section;

Figures 2 and 3 are plan views shown as taken on the lines 22 and 33 respectively of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the combination in working relationship shown as taken on the line 4-45 of'Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a similar view in section shown. as taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 1;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the combination shown as in exploded condition; and

Figure '7 is an elevation of part of an article to which the present invention is particularly directed.

Description:

As seen in the drawings and referring more particularly to Figure l, I have shown part of a sewing machine it having a needle holder H, presser foot bracket l2, and the machine bed or work supporting table l3. It is tothese several parts of the sewing machine that the present combination, namely, presser foot I 4, throat plate l5 and feed dog l6, may be conveniently attached to the usual sewing machine structure as will be understood by those skilled in the art. It further is to be understood that the combination of parts M, 15 and iii are essential to the carrying out of the present invention, that of feeding a tape ll flatwise to the feed dog I6 and there to issue to the underside of an article or 1 such as a collar or the like while being sewn; to

work, the presser foot l4 providing means for guiding and keeping the tape and article in required position while lines of stitching are applied thereto by the needles.

As seen in Figures 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6, the presser 5 foot it may be conveniently attached to the sewing machine structure by suitable means, one of such means preferably being by a bolt l8 through a'hole it provided in the vertical portion 23 of said presser foot. Projecting outward- 10 ly and downwardly towards the needles of the machine is a substantially transverse or horizontal portion 2! of the presser foot, and adjacent the outer part thereof may be provided a pair of substantially longitudinal slots or openings .22, 22 through which the needles are enabled to pass during operation.

Towards the upper part of the vertical portion near one side edge thereof is provided an opening or hole receiving and holding the upper 20 transverse part or end of a spring-like member 23. Said spring-1ike member preferably extends downward-1y parallel to the said vertical portion 2% of the presser foot, is looped next the lower end of saidportion and then extends forwardly 25 to the outer end of the flat portion 2| where it is inserted in another hole for the purpose. In order that the spring-like member will not become displaced during operation, a cut-out portion 24% is provided in the portion 20 and extending outwardly to adjacent the outer end of the fiat portion 2i. Said cut-out portion provides a shoulder 25 on the vertical portion so that the spring-like member or loop thereof may securely rest thereagai'nst. Said spring may extend in a 5 substantially horizontal plane in the direction of the flat portion 2! and the end of the spring bent to pass through in a downward direction through the said hole provided therefor. Said end of the spring preferably projects a distance from the 40 bottom of the flat portion 2! to constitute a Work guide as will hereinafter be described.

The throat plate l5, as will readily be understood, is preferably of a generally flat nature, and adapted to be made secure to the table or bed I3 of the sewing machine as by screws 26, 26 as seen in Figure 1, one of said screws passing through a hole in the forward part of the plate. Centrally, and extending approximately to mid- Way of the plate from the forward end thereof, is provided a channel or groove 2'l having diverging walls and of appropriate width through which the binding or tape ll may be fed and guided to the feed dog it as shown best in Figures 1, 3 and 6, thereby assuring the delivery of the tape in a flatwise condition to the other part of the work or collar blank. At the inner terminus of the groove or channel, an enlarged opening 28 is provided, said opening extending through from the top to the bottom of the plate. This opening 28 is of a greater lengthwise dimension than the upper part of the feed dog projecting upwardly into said opening whereby the said feed dog may operate in a forward and backward direction during operation of the machine as will be understood.

The feed dog I6 is provided with a tape-receiving and guiding channel 29 from its forward end aligning with the channel or groove 21 of the throat plate, said dog channel 29 deflecting upwardly within the dog and issuing at the top of the dog intermediate the forward and rearward ends thereof preferably coincident with the position of the needle-passing holes 30. Tape feeding along the throat-plate channel 21 continues without deflection into dog channel 29, is there deflected upward and issues at the mid-part of the dog upon the upper surface thereof at the precise point of stitching at which point it will be noted that needles 3| stitch the tape H to the edge of the collar, this arrangement functioning to prevent any buckling or distortion of the work being operated upon.

In carrying out the invention, the tape l1 enters the channel or groove 21 passing thence into the dog channel 29 in a flatwise condition, the channel 21 being substantially the same width as the tape. As the tape continues into the dog channel, it retains its flatwise condition and issues 1 at the top midway thereof to be juxtaposed to the edge of the collar blank or the like 32. At this particular meeting point of the tape and collar blank, the needles simultaneously operate to introduce a double line of stitching thereto. In

'; order that the collar blank being sewn be at all times in proper alignment, I have shown the downwardly projecting portion of the spring-like member 23 as juxtaposed to the edge of the collar blank 32 thereby acting as a work guide 33.

Said work guide at all times will keep the edge of the collar blank in proper alignment with respect to the stitching operation, and prevent the collar accidentally running from side to side. It will be noted that the top of the dog is flattened at a part thereof for receiving the bottom of the work guide 33, so that the dog operating in either a forward or backward direction creates no frictional contact to interfere with either the movement of the dog or the guide.

Furthermore, the upper face of the dog I6 is roughened, as by cross serrations 34 therein, both in advance of the issuance of the tape and beyond the same, whereby the forward part of the dog will engage and advance the collar blank 32 simultaneous with the frictional gripping and advancement of the tape I! by the face of the dog. This obtains a simultaneous timing and amount of advancement of both the collar blank and the tape, and positively avoids any tendency of the collar blank and tape to advance at different speeds or to bunch.

By virtue of the work guide 33, it readily will be noted that the tape I1 is sewn to the edge of the collar blank or the like 32 evenly and without the possibility of the hem edges protruding adijacent the outer edge of the collar as best shown in Figure '7. The needles 3| apply even lines of stitches 35 tocomplete the work, and in this respect we call attention to the parallelism of said stitches with respect to the edges of said work. It is preferred to have the first line of stitches, namely, the line adjacent the outer edge of the collar to be back from the edge a distance more than is normal, so should there be an accidental break in any threads comprising the fabric from which the collar is constructed, suificient material will remain along the edge, particularly in the region between the line of stitches and the extreme outer edge, which will prevent any possibility of such broken threads projecting outwardly beyond the said edge.

I claim:

1. In sewing machine attachments as characterized comprising in combination a presser foot, throat plate and feed dog, said feed dog having a roughened upper face for engaging and advancing the work and having both a longitudinal and vertical feed motion, said feed dog also having a smooth upwardly directed area depressed below the said roughened face, and a work guide having its lower end in constant engagement with said smooth area of the said feed dog during stitching of the work so as to be below the level of the under surface of the work in use.

2. In sewing machine attachments as characterized comprising in combination a presser foot, throat plate and feed dog, said feed dog having a roughened upper face for engaging and advancing the work and having both a longitudinal and vertical feed motion, said feed dog also having a smooth upwardly directed area depressed below the said roughened face, a work guide having its lower end in constant engagement with said smooth area of the said feed dog during stitching of the work so as to be below the level of the under surface of the work in use, and means exerting a spring tension for holding said guide against said feed dog and rendering said guide responsive to the vertical movement of said feed dog.

HOWARD C. UNDERWOOD. 

